A follow up warning related to the Frederick County Snowy owl of a couple
years ago and continuing problems.
I've been out road trapping and banding hawks lately. I often speak to
local landowners and farmers while doing so. It seems that birders
blocking roads and trespassing are still a problem in the area, even
without a rare bird hanging around.
I urge everyone to use some courtesy and respect the rights of landowners
when birding. Don't block roads and don't park where you shouldn't, don't
point your scopes or bins at a house, and don't go wandering through the
fields without asking.
If something unusual shows up, please exercise some control. Talk to the
landowners before you spread the word. Find out how they feel about people
hanging around their property. Ask where you can park, what is off limits.
If they say no, then respect it. Let them know what is there, why it is
special, and how many people to expect. Respect their wishes and share
their expectations when you tell others where to find the bird.
Contacting the local bird club is probably the next best step. They can
try to keep an eye on activities and maintain good landowner/birder
relations.
It is sad to see that birders get such a bad reputation for the activities
of a few. I have seen some bad practices by some and they are always from
another county. Try birding out of town with the same respect for residents
as you would at home.
J. Steven Huy
Middletown, MD, USA
-----Original Message-----
From: Phil Davis [SMTP:]
Sent: Sunday, 16 January, 2005 12:55
To:
Subject: [MDOSPREY] Great Gray Owls
MD Osprey:
This is just a prudent "heads-up," not a call for action ...
This past Wednesday, I was contacted by Mark Alt, the President of the
Minnesota Ornithological Society. He had received a terse email from a
couple in Maryland reporting a Great Gray Owl and supposedly it was
photographed. Unfortunately, the couple did not subsequently forward the
photo as promised and repeated attempts by Mark Alt and me to contact them
via email did not elicit any further responses. We have both "sleuthed" the
Internet trying to determine an address or phone number, but have been
unsuccessful so far.
The reported location was at the Gunpowder River and Jennifer Run. From
some map detective work, this location seems to be off of Harford Run,
immediately south of the Baltimore/Harford County line (in Baltimore
County), just below the Gunpowder River.
At this point, we don't know if the report was true, a mistake, a prank, or
even perhaps, a Barred Owl.
Since there was an unconfirmed report on January 9 of a possible Great Gray
in Cashtown, PA, seven miles west of Gettysburg, I wanted to go ahead and
let the birding community know, just so that people can keep their eyes
open even further.
Phil
===================================================
Phil Davis, Secretary
MD/DC Records Committee
2549 Vale Court
Davidsonville, Maryland 21035 USA
301-261-0184
mailto:[log in to unmask]
MD/DCRC Web site: http://www.MDBirds.org/mddcrc/rcindex.html
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